Ovintiv gains from lower costs

Article Excerpt

OVINTIV INC. $22 is still a buy. The energy producer (Toronto symbol OVV; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 259.8 million; Market cap: $5.7 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.0; Dividend yield: 2.2%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.ovintiv.com) operates three core natural gas properties: Montney (B.C.), Anadarko (Oklahoma) and Permian (Texas). In addition to natural gas, these fields produce large amounts of oil and natural gas liquids. The company spent $1.75 billion on exploration and upgrades in 2020, which is less than its original estimate of $1.8 billion (all amounts except share price and market cap in U.S. dollars). For 2021, that spending should drop to $1.5 billion. The lower outlays, combined with better drilling efficiency, will let Ovinitiv cut its $7.14 billion in long-term debt by $1 billion in 2021. Ovintiv is a buy. buy. …